LifeSmarts program begins for students
The Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs Office of the Securities Commissioner announces the start of the 2014-15 season of the LifeSmarts competition in Hawaii.
LifeSmarts is a fun, educational competition brought to Hawaii by the DCCA Office of the Securities Commissioner in partnership with the Hawaii Credit Union League and run by the National Consumers League. It tests middle and high school students nationwide on real-life consumer issues through online quizzes and in-person competition. It is a free consumer education competition open to teens in grades six through 12.
High school teams were able to sign up starting Friday and compete online at lifesmarts.org between Oct. 27 and 7 p.m. Dec. 3. At the end of the online competition, scores will be tabulated and the top four scoring teams will be invited to compete at the state championship to be held Feb. 7 in Honolulu. The DCCA Office of the Securities Commissioner will send the winning team to represent Hawaii at the national competition, which will be held from April 17 to 20 in Seattle.
LifeSmarts teaches teens critical life skills in areas covering personal finance, consumer rights and responsibilities, health and safety, environment and technology. Coaches gain access to up-to-date broad-based consumer educational resources via mail, online and links to local and national organizations.
For teachers looking for ways to supplement their classes, the LifeSmarts program meets national educational standards. LifeSmarts will complement any school curriculum and can be used as a learning activity for classes, groups, clubs, and community organizations. Interested coaches can log onto lifesmartshawaii.com for additional information about the Hawaii competition.
All teams must have an adult sponsor or coach to participate. A team competing online may have any number of students, but a team competing in-person is made up of four to five students.
The middle school or “Junior Varsity” teams may sign up and participate in an online-only competition designed especially for middle school students in sixth through eighth grades from September to February. Winners of the JV competition will be recognized online.
Registration is free and is done online at lifesmarts.org. Those interested in forming a team can contact LifeSmarts State Coordinator Theresa Kong Kee at 587-7400 or tkongkee@dcca.hawaii.gov for more information. Businesses interested in becoming a sponsor may also contact the state coordinator.
Kamehameha accepting applications for 2015-16
The Kamehameha Schools K-12 program applications for the Kapalama, Hawaii and Maui campuses for the 2015-16 school year are available at ksbe.edu/admissions. The deadline to apply is Sept. 30.
The primary admission points for the Kapalama campus are kindergarten, fourth, seventh and ninth grades for Oahu residents. West Hawaii, Molokai, Lanai, Kauai, Niihau and Hana district residents’ primary admission points are seventh and ninth grades. For the Hawaii and Maui campuses, the primary admission points are kindergarten, sixth and ninth grades.
For kindergartners, eligible male and female applicants are born between Aug. 1, 2009, and July 31, 2010. As part of the transition from the previous age requirement, this year, Kamehameha Schools will also accept kindergarten applications from boys born in July 2009.
Applications for grades 10, 11 and 12 for all campuses are accepted, but spaces are limited.
For more information, call Kapalama Admissions at 842-8800; Maui Admissions at 572-3133; Hawaii Admissions at 982-0100; or toll-free at 800-842-4682, ext. 28800.